Light, Shadows and Darkness

You might think shadows and darkness are alike. No. Darkness is the absence of Light, Shadows however, are only there when there is light... well, this is the first chapter :)

Something was definitely odd; the air was too cold and the night was just too dark--in fact, nothing was virtually visible. She squinted, but the overwhelming darkness was nowhere near penetrable.

The rustle of leaves aloft might be the only clue as to where she was--but she didn’t know what to make of it. Eliza Just was lost, and it seems she would stay that way longer than she hoped.

How Eliza ended up in that situation is the big question. She was utterly sure she had been in the living room not so long ago: she remembered the smell of hot chocolate vividly, the comfortable way she cradled on the red couch, watching her favorite TV-show while taking petite bites from a butterscotch cupcake, when suddenly... blank. Nothing goes after.

Eliza hugged herself, fighting the urge to scream. She pinched her arm and gave out a small squeak. She undoubtedly felt that, and it made her nervous.

It was not a dream. She was awake.

What happened? How did she get here? Where was “here” in the first place? If only she knew… but the darkness was unhelpful.

It was a while before she noticed the scent of decomposed flora: the damp, not so unpleasant odor that filled the air. It was nostalgic. Eliza remembered the times she walked on the way home--why was that? What was with the smell?

It dawned onto her: the darkness; the rustle of leaves; the damp odor--could she possibly be in the Greenweed Forest?! The idea sent a shiver down her spine. She let out a panicked giggle.

Ridiculous!

The very thought was absurd--horrifying, in fact, that she dared not believe it, but the leaves’ shushes suddenly grew louder, silencing the denial of the sole idea.

Eliza heard stories about Greenweed, none of them were good. There were countless cases of persons gone missing; rumor has it that beasts, known only in the most fearful of tales, ate them. These were most probably untrue; nevertheless, she knew better to take care whenever she walked by the forest--never to cross the uncharted region. So, oddly enough, why would she be there?

Her eyes scanned the darkness, straining to see even the slightest, but to no avail. She needed to escape, but an inner voice tells her heading toward a random direction is a big no. For one, a wrong path could bring a person deeper into the heart of the woods; then again, staying put would never lead her to the exit as well.

Wait for help to come sounded good… but she doubted anyone would think of looking for her in Greenweed. They would definitely call her best friend first, but when they find out she was not with Jana, where would they go and try to find her next? The school? The mall? The park? Or perhaps, grandpa’s and grandma’s place?

It could take a day or two or more before they could even think of Greenweed--or never at all, and that frightened her; in that infamous forest, an hour or two could be the difference between life and death.

Her breathing sped up--the thought of death scaring her more than the dark. Was this her fated end, knowing nothing of how she got there?

 

Eliza was about to lose hope, when, by some miracle, a spot of light emerged from afar--a match-sized glowing that signaled survival.

She rubbed her eyes twice to make sure they were not playing tricks on her. The sight was breathtaking; it might be an answered prayer, and she could not help but break into a run towards the blaze that is nothing if not freedom.

Her feet cried out in pleasure. The crunching sound made as she dashed through the forest grounds was music compared to the ghostly moan of the trees; the cold wind that slapped her face was a soft caress in comparison to the thought that she was never to escape the place.

But then, suddenly, she noticed something was not right. She stopped her pace instinctively, deciphered what she was seeing, and finally, took small steps backwards.

The star-like light, in close inspection, was not the way out as what Eliza first expected it to be. Well, things did seem too good to be true. It may not have been clear a moment ago but surprisingly, it took the form of a young girl.

Eliza stared intently at the figure, hoping that it might change its appearance, perhaps get shy by the piercing stare she gave, but alas, that did not seem to do the trick and Eliza panicked all the more.

Who was this girl? Was she lost in the forest too? Somehow, Eliza knew the answer was no. For one, the girl was all sparkly and Eliza doubted any normal girl could take darkness away, literally.

It was getting bigger, or at least, getting nearer, and it was not without haste.

She tried to run away, making a short dash only to get her foot caught up in a tangle of roots. She fell, landing face first, having her ankle twisted in the process. The shout knotted in her throat--both the pain and fear too overwhelming a combination. Creating any more movement was suffering.

With fear clearly etched on her face, Eliza turned with difficulty and faced the girl. She expected a laugh, something a predator might do when it catches its prey, but it didn’t come. Surprisingly, the she-light was sad; the frown was unmistakable. Eliza could not think of any reason why this was so. Perhaps it was because its prey was caught easily? There isn’t any other reason, or is there?

They stayed in their positions, steady as statues: Eliza, with her elbows supporting her, otherwise, she would be lying on her back, and the she-light, standing no more than two meters away from Eliza, straight as a tree.

It might be because of the shock and the pain, but it was a bit later before Eliza realized that everything had come to a mute, scarily so. Even the rustle of leaves was gone.

Eliza suddenly moved her gaze to the she-light’s eyes and got a feeling it was vaguely familiar. She unintentionally calmed. That chestnut brown shade was not unlike her grandmother’s. Was that just a mere coincidence? A lot of questions ran in Eliza’s mind.

‘I come to warn you ahead of time’, the voice of the girl echoed. It was sharp, but it did not bring pain, and yet it was eerie enough to make the hairs on Eliza’s arms stand to their ends.

‘Heed it and stop a crime’, the girl continued. Eliza’s jaw dropped. The girl did look somewhere around seven or eight a while ago, but now, she looked like she was about as old as Eliza, or even older.

‘Remember that shadows only gain power when there is light’, the verse went on, said by a middle aged woman. Eli was freaking out. She can’t help but check her own hands more than necessary to see if she was getting the age boost of the speaker as well. Thank goodness she wasn’t.

‘And only darkness can erase a shadow’s delight’. It finished and the girl was now an aged woman, not very different from how Eli’s grandmother looked. Strange. Who was this she-light?

Skins were suddenly shearing off the old maiden. Some of them fell on Eliza and she could not help but yelp in disgust. She tried to drag her body from the creepy phenomenon that was the rotting lady. It was one hell of a show.

The decomposition continued. The skeleton shook violently as some of the pieces fell off and turned into dust. Eliza covered her mouth, totally against breathing in the foul material. She was exhausted, disgusted and scared, but the thought of the she-light disbanding itself somehow lit a light inside Eliza.

When it had gone away, Eliza thought she was finally safe when a red grin suddenly flashed somewhere in the trees, behind where the old lady had been.

Eliza woke up with a start, tears trickling down her face. She was breathing madly as if rhinos chased her for miles. Wasn't she sure she wasn't dreaming? Well, at least that was over!

The light that the sun let in her room dazzled her. She covered her eyes, recalling a line in the verse:

 

Shadows only gain power when there is light…

Author's Note

So, I originally thought of making this in a first person point of view... but I had difficulties... well, here goes... would you continue reading? If not, what is wrong? Anything you want me to change? :) I'd like that :)

Reviews

[Silent Wolf]

MORE MORE MORE MORE... please?

[Toni]

Can't wait to read more! (:

[Monster ^.^]

Really? That's good to hear ! :)

[Toni]

Yes really (: